My view of the Phnom Penh cityscape for the next fortnight.

Down and Out in Sydney and Phnom Penh

Alexi Demetriadi
June 25, 2020

Globe reporter Alexi is stuck in quarantine for two-weeks in the outskirts of Phnom Penh after his flight returned a positive case of Covid-19. In his first diary entry from isolation, he talks swabs, Russian Boulevard and Avicii

This time last week I was knocking back a cold, crisp Resch’s Pilsner, Australia’s finest, while overlooking the Sydney harbour. Fast forward seven days, I’m sipping a lukewarm Cambodia Lager, while overlooking the cityscape of Phnom Penh from my hotel balcony on Russian Boulevard. But that’s where the similarities end.

It didn’t used to be like this. Little over 24 hours before I was subject to what would surely have been described as breaking and entering – I’ve had tonsillitis almost six times, but I would trade another bout of that for the Covid-19 swab test that was thrust upon us at Phnom Penh airport.

I was near the end of the queue, awaiting my turn to be tested. Ahead, in the makeshift testing zone, I saw a woman in tears and one man swearing. You may see descriptions of the test on Google as “mildly unpleasant” or “quite uncomfortable”. These are wrong.

A Tweet doing the rounds during the early months of Covid-19 isolation was that British mathematician Isaac Newton managed to lay the groundwork for the laws of gravity in lockdown during the Great Plague, in 1665.

full https://southeastasiaglobe.com/quarantine-phnom-penh/

Entry two: A delivery of true Cambodian craft (beer)

Alexi Demetriadi
June 28, 2020

While it’s not quite a freshly poured pilsner, I mustn’t complain – choul mouy

I've lost it. The black Sharpie day-count I’ve been making on my ceiling tells me it’s day 19, but I’m almost certain that can’t be right. The small potted plant in my bathroom, Ferguson, is no longer speaking to me after a disagreement about the best Ocean’s film (it’s clearly the original, idiot). And I’m worried words no longer make sense.

We get temperature tested each morning around 9am, to make sure we haven’t got a fever and we received a breakdown of how the costs of our stay work, as well as some general guidance and instructions.

On the day of arrival at our hotel for the next two-weeks, I tried both Cambodian Lager and Angkor Beer for the first time. Both I found to be crisp, fresh lagers and would definitely enjoy drinking again from a tap. But there were whispers that a delivery from Tassilo of some Cambodian craft was slowly forming. Exciting? You bet! Dangerous? Maybe. Not worth the effort? No way!

Set the scene. Me: four floors up, no cash on hand to order from the cold fridge in the hotel’s restaurant, mouth = dry, craving = hops and barley. Into the hotel car park pulls up in a black estate car, as seen from my balcony. Quiet, yet regal, it’s black sheen glistens under the hot Cambodian sun. The car-boot slowly raises.

full https://southeastasiaglobe.com/quaranti ... enh-hotel/